A breath away
by Amorficus
Summary: "The oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown." She recalled reading that once. Convenient timing, as she was just about to enter the unknown and leave behind all she ever knew. Bracing herself, she set sail towards the biggest adventure of her life. / Marco x OC & Slight AU & Rated M for various explicit themes.
1. Under the under

This is something I'm rewriting. And I mean completely rewriting. This is actually my first fanfiction ever and thus when I returned to it, I couldn't help but cringe at the horrible mess I created. So I decided to polish it up a little.

Oh and I promise you. It really, actually is a One Piece fanfiction. I know, the intro may seem like the furthest thing, but I'm getting to it. Building up, if you will.

 **Disclaimer.** The characters and world belong to Eiichiro Oda, save for the things I create. The fanfiction has been rated M for various explicit themes I will decide to explore.

 _Musical inspiration for the chapter: Sunrise by Our Last Night._

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 **Chapter one**  
 _Under the under_

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"On the accusation of crimes against the Kingdom, you, Euphemia Rosa, are hereby placed under arrest."

A loud _thud_ was heard as a ladle dropped on the wooden floor, staining the floor with specks of broth. The girl accused stood shell-shocked, mouth slightly ajar and eyes wide in terror. Her hands were trembling.

"You will be escorted to the palace Underchambers, where you will await your trial. You are not allowed to resist. Do note we have been given permission to use any means necessary, in case of your insufficient cooperation."

Before she could even process what was said, she was grabbed by her hands and had them cuffed behind her back. She began to protest but the words fell short as she was unceremoniously dragged out of her home and pushed into the ominous looking carriage right at her door. Two men followed her inside, closing the cold, metal doors behind them. She was shoved onto one of the seats while they sat right across her, their eyes never leaving her. Several seconds later the carriage begun to move. The girl, Euphemia took a steadying breath, trying to calm herself, although it did little to help. Her hands were still slightly trembling so she clenched her fists, nails digging into her palms and leaving red crescent moons when she slowly relaxed them. The trembling stopped. She cautiously peered at the men in the carriage. They were dressed in identical black robes, with a green sash around the waist that supported their swords. On the chest there was a neatly sewn golden insignia of a tree. The royal coat of arms. Her complexion turned completely pale at the sight of their faces, or more like the lack of seeing one. They wore intricate masks that covered the whole upper part of their faces.

Euphemia lowered her gaze, face white as a sheet. It was at that moment she knew she was fucked. These men were the Queen's personal guards. She felt herself starting to hyperventilate so she tightly closed her eyes and dug her nails into her palms once more, this time drawing blood. She needed to calm down. Fear and panic never helped anyone. She concentrated on her breathing, feeling the air in her lungs. _Breathe in, breathe out, in, out…_

After a couple of minutes, she felt herself relax somewhat; as much as the current situation allowed anyway. She slowly opened her eyes and lifted her head, levelling her gaze with the men.

"On what charges am accused of?" Euphemia asked, forcing her voice to not waver.

The man on the right gave her a cursory once-over, but gave no immediate answer. It seemed as if he was contemplating if she was even worth the effort of responding. He kept looking at her coldly, causing Euphemia to squirm in discomfort. She had almost given up on getting anything out of them, when the man finally gave her a clipped answer.

"Abuse of power, blackmail and treason of the highest order."

Euphemia's mouth fell slightly open at the accusations and began to retort, "What are these obscure claims?! When have I- ", but her question was left unfinished when the carriage suddenly came to a halt, causing her to hit the side of her head against the wall. She winced at the slight pain it caused to her temples.

"We have arrived." The man on the left opened the door, letting the sunlight creep inside. For Euphemia the light was fleeting though. She was once again abruptly dragged outside, and while she was briefly blinded by the sunshine, it faded to darkness moments later as they entered a dark corridor. From the short glimpse she got of the familiar surroundings, she knew she was in the palace. The door behind her closed and she was led through the dimly lit pathway towards another door. It looked aged and surely had seen better days. The guards opened the door to reveal a spiral staircase leading down.

 _So this.. leads to the Underchambers,_ Euphemia thought.

Underchambers – a fancy term for _prison_. And not your average prison. The bad, bad, bad kind of prison. The kind you see before your head is removed from your shoulders and your soul returns to The Tree. Euphemia shuddered at the thought.

 _This can't be happening.. Why?_

They descended for quite some time and not only because it was way below the castle. The steps were uneven, the light dull and the obvious reluctance on someone's part made the journey slow. Finally reaching the bottom, she saw only about four cells in there.

 _Guess since all the people who end up here are usually death row prisoners, so they don't need many cells..,_ a rather dreary thought drifted through her mind. She dully took in the little surroundings there were to see. The walls were made of stone, ceiling as well. No windows, obviously..

"Move." A harsh command came from behind her, as she was jerked forward. The guards opened the closest cell and shoved her inside. The door was locked briskly and the men hastily left the dingy dungeon, since obviously they had more pleasant places to be.

"Euphie..?" A familiar voice echoed from behind her. Her head turned towards the voice, hoping with all her heart that she was mistaken.

There, at the back of the cell was an elderly man so familiar, yet so different from when she last saw him. He was sitting on the furthest thing from a bed she had ever seen. His hair was damp from the moisture in the dungeon, his clothes were dirty and torn and he looked thin. Very thin. She was sure he was severely malnourished. She felt her heart break.

"Gerard.."

Gerard stood up shakily and covered the distance between them with a few measured steps. He raised his hands, put them around Euphemia and pulled her into a tight hug.

"How I've missed you, my girl." He murmured softly. Euphemia let out a choked sob and leaned into him since she was unable to return the hug. Gerard chuckled humourlessly. "Now, now. What's with the display of weakness?" He admonished.

Euphemia bumped him away with slight irritation. "What is happening? Why is this happening? Why are you here?" Unable to stop her barrage of questions leaving her mouth, she continued. "What happened to you? You were supposed to return months ago!" Her mouth distorted in anger that had been bubbling up since the guards broke into her home. "And why am I cuffed while you are not?" She begun to pace to ease her restlessness.

"Removing those decorative cuffs shouldn't be much trouble for you, or am I wrong?" Gerard said, raising his silver brow. "They didn't bother restraining me further because I'm weak." He shrugged and turned around to sit down on the bed. "Euphie.. I'm sorry."

She stopped her pacing to look at Gerard worriedly. "Why are _you_ sorry?"

"Because it's my fault." He stated simply. "Albeit I'm not going to take the whole blame – you did your part well enough." He let out a sigh.

"What..?"

She didn't finish her question as her ears picked up faint footsteps echoing from the staircase.

"Someone's coming.." She muttered, more to herself.

Gerard's brows furrowed. "Euphie." He urged in a hushed voice. "They're most likely here for me. I don't have much time, please listen."

"What do you mean-?" Yet she was cut off.

"Just listen. You know what the highest treason is and as well as the severity of the punishment. I already had my trial. I have no time left." Euphie was about cut in again, but he pressed on. "But you. You are strong. Strong enough to get away. Live your life Euphie. You've been shackled long enough." Gerard smiled at the girl who was mutely shaking her head, unwanting to hear these words and their implications. He reached behind her back and placed something in her palm and closed her fingers around it. Just then, a guard appeared in front of their cell and unlocked it. Eyes dark and voice cold, he beckoned. "Gerard Wo. It's time."

He stood slowly, straightening his back proudly as he walked out. "Ah.." As if remembering something, he turned towards the guard. "May I have my last words here?"

The guard gave one nod of consent. Gerard turned to Euphemia who looked back with a pained expression.

"From time to time, there arise among human beings, people, who seem to exude love, as naturally as the sun gives out heat. I'm sure you will find yours." He smiled at the girl. "I love you, I always considered you my daughter and I'm so proud to have been able to raise you."

"No..! Gerard! No, no, no-" She shouted and pleaded, but he was gone. The guard had taken him up the stairs and she couldn't even hear the footsteps anymore. She felt her power surge under her skin, fuelled by the anger and misery that were threatening to spill, but she stopped when she balled her fists and felt the crumpled paper Gerard had left her. She calmed herself enough to breathe normally and locked her turmoil of emotions deep into her subconscious. Her fight or flight kicked in as the coldness took over.

No longer caring for any repercussions, she destroyed the cuffs with a single thought. She opened her palm with the paper and smoothed it out.

It was a map. _A way out._

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 ** _To be continued._**


	2. The vast unknown

Second chapter is here! Rather fast for me, in my opinion. **:D** I struggle juggling work.. and well, basically anything else these days. That's adult life for you. _Sigh_.

I do hope you enjoy and I much appreciate a constructive review as I don't have anyone to do the editorial work for me. **(:**

 **Disclaimer.** The characters and world belong to Eiichiro Oda, save for the things I create. The fanfiction has been rated M for various explicit themes I will decide to explore.

 _Musical inspiration for the chapter: Impossible by Two Steps From Hell._

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 **Chapter two**  
 _The vast unknown_

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Euphemia folded and pocketed the map after studying it for a couple of minutes. Gerard was right, the only thing keeping her here was her own uncertainty of the unknown. She was _scared_. Funny really, considering what she had been doing for a living up until now. She walked up to the cell's bars, placed her hands on them and pulled. The metal gave away easily, bending to her power. Once out, she headed towards the stairs and begun to climb them.

One, two, three, four.. Fifteen.. Twenty two, twenty three..

"Ah." _There we go._ She took a deep breath, preparing herself for what was to come. There was no turning back now. Exhale.

 ** _BANG_** **.**

Huge chunks of bedrock and earth fell heavily on the stairs, wrecking the already aged path and causing more damage as they slid further down. The whole Underlevels quaked from the impact and Euphemia watched with mild satisfaction at the gaping hole in front of her. It wouldn't be long till all hell broke loose, but she had no such time. She prayed the distraction Gerard provided would win her a few. The map hadn't lied – right in the middle of the staircase there was a hidden pathway leading somewhere out of the palace grounds. It might have once served as an escape route, but it seemed long forgotten. It looked like it hadn't been used in centuries; it was musty, damp and smelled of earth. She desperately hoped it hadn't caved in somewhere after years and years of neglect. She carefully stepped over the rubble and once further inside the tunnel, she brought down the ceiling with another burst of power. It would hold off the pursuers at least a little while. The passage was narrow, barely wide enough for one person and it was pitch-black. Euphemia strained her eyes, but to no avail. Needing to move, and fast, she placed one of her hands against the musky wall and ran.

She rushed, feeling the breeze that came with running at high speeds. She tripped and nearly fell a couple of times, but she didn't waver. Her lungs burned and she felt the muscles in her legs ripple as she pushed forward, enjoying the strain her body got. So far, she hadn't heard anyone in pursuit, but instead of comfort it brought her doubts. What if the passage wasn't a secret after all? What if when she finally made it out, wherever it leaded her, instead of freedom she would face peril? Euphemia knew, that if it came down to having to fight, she would surely face defeat. No luck would save her there. She shook her head, as if to will the traitorous thoughts away. All she could do was to trust in her luck and hope for the best.

It was hard to keep track of time in the dark corridor, but she figured at least half an hour had passed when she first noticed some changes. The tunnel started to slowly descend and the wall her hand was tracing had turned noticably more wet. She was quite sure she also smelled the familiar salty scent of the sea. She picked up her pace, stumbling and bumping her already bruised knees, yet she cared little. It wasn't long until she could finally _see_. It wasn't much, since evening had arrived already, but she did see some _light_. Nearing closer to the presumed exit, she slowed down slightly and strained her ears for anything amiss and prepared to defend herself, if need be. Eyes and senses alert, she creeped forward, step by step. The right side of the exit was thinly veiled with vines and leaves, so she used them to her advantage in hiding her presence. Her suspicions about her whereabouts were confirmed as her eyes took in the sight of the Calm Sea.

 _Chirp, chirp, chirp._

She perked up at the sound. _South birds!_ She heard them calling happily, lilting a simple tune. A tiny bit of relief washed over her. Happy, undisturbed birds. Either her pursuers were very good at hiding themselves, or the Goddess of Luck was on her side. For now. She had reached the edge of the tunnel and carefully looked around. She was up. Quite high, in the middle of a cliff. She appeared to be on the left side of the island which belonged to the farmers. That was the only place she could think of where the ground level was so high. She didn't have much ways to go besides down. Lovely. But losers can't be choosers.. Right? Observing the rest of her surroundings, she noticed a small fishing dock further away. Her eyes widened as she realized she recognized the place.

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 _"_ _Where are we going uncle Gerard?" A young and curious Euphemia asked. They were walking hand-in-hand through a bustling market at a small fishing village. The morning sun heated their backs pleasantly. It was unusually warm for this early in the summer, but it was most welcome._

 _"You'll see when we get there, now be patient."_

 _"But I'm tired, we've been walking like, forever!" She pouted and scrunched her petite nose. Gerard just laughed._

 _"Euphie, it's been 20 minutes! Be a good girl and I'll buy you some cotton candy on the way back." He petted her head lovingly._

 _"Fine.." She caved at the promise of cotton candy and although she still pretended to pout, her sparkling eyes gave it away._

 _"Besides, Euphie, weren't you always bugging me about wanting to see this place? It will be our little secret, alright?" He smiled broadly._

 _Euphemia's face perked up. "Un! I want to share a lot of secrets with you! You always bring me all kinds of interesting things. Like that one time you showed me that beautiful, shiny bauble on your arm-" She kept on happily rambling._

 _"Hush-hush, aren't those our secrets?" He playfully admonished the child. "You don't want everyone to know, right?"_

 _"Oh! I'm sorry!" She clamped her mouth shut, but her eyes kept twinkling. "He he he!" Gerard just shook his head at her antics._

 _"This way, Euphie." He pulled her along. They neared the edge of the village. "We are now going rock climbing, doesn't that sound fun?"_

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Euphemia smiled at the memory. She had been so young then, Gerard too. Her smile fell at the thought of her uncle. No, she had no time to reminisce about the past. She needed to get off the island. Now. She looked down and searched for the road had taken. _They had exited the village and followed the shoreline just until it begun to rise.. And then.._

Euphemia searched. The small path was built in stone, it had to be there. But she couldn't find the trail, no matter how much she strained her eyes. Panic started to slowly creep under her skin. She couldn't linger here! Her eyes went back and forth, looking, searching. She felt her pulse quicken. _No! It's not here!_ She needed to find it. Fast! "Ah!" She mouthed. Of course! The tide. The water level is much higher right now, it was summer then, obviously. She let out a sigh of relief, but it was brief. She still didn't see the nook, so the only option she had left, was to search from below. Meaning she had to jump in the water. It was almost winter right now.. She shook her head and pushed the thought away, concentrating on the task instead.

 _Breathe._

She took in the surroundings for the last time, made sure she heard no one and saw no one and without a moment's hesitation, she jumped. The next thing she knew she was submerged in an icy prison. She felt her body jerk and cramp from the extreme cold. She knew she needed to move but it was so damn difficult.

 _MOVE!_

She forced her limbs to move, swimming towards the surface. She needed air, to breathe. And then quickly get out. All instincts were screaming at her to tap into her core, to draw out her gift, yet she supressed the urge. She couldn't. It would lead _them_ here and that was the last thing she needed. By some miracle she had managed to get this far unfollowed and she honestly preferred the solitude. She popped her head out of the water finally, gasping for air, breathing in the delicious oxygen. She begun searching as soon as she got in a few breaths. Fortunately, it didn't take too long, but she had a difficult time moving her cooling body. If she stayed much longer it would not end well. She swam to the edge of the nook and hurriedly started to push herself out.

"Ow!" She hissed in pain when she slipped and cut her leg on a sharp rock, making her dip back into the water. She tried again, taking more care this time. When she was finally out, she scrambled to her feet, trembling from the cold. She winced when she put weight on her leg. It was bleeding quite a bit. Euphemia scowled. Deciding she'd deal with it later when and if she was safe, she took to studying the cave. It was exactly as she remembered it to be, well, maybe perhaps a bit smaller. To a child's eyes everything is out of proportions. It was a room-sized alcove made of bedrock. The sea reached inside, creating a small pool in the middle. And floating in that pool was her ticket out of here. Their little secret. There, anchored in the middle lay a modest, wooden boat. One of Gerard's _projects_. He built it with his own two hands over the years. He loved spending time with it, tinkering it.

Euphemia wasted no further time dwelling on things and boarded the small vessel. It consisted of two rooms, bottom sleeping quarters and top cabin. It was more than she needed. She pulled the anchor up and placed it in it's designated spot. She climbed the single mast of the ship and unfurled the sails. Jumping down, she went to tighten the fabric and set everything else in place. She hadn't sailed much, but Gerard had taught her the basics and she had spent a little time on Border Patrol.

Euphemia froze. _The border patrols_. How was she going to get past that? She had completely forgotten about it. It's entirely possible that was the reason she had no one on her tail. Perhaps they focused all their forces there? It was more than plausible. The only upside was that if she made it past the Calm Sea, she had her freedom. They wouldn't follow her to the Outside, they couldn't. Steadying her resolve, she powered on the boat. It made a soft _whishh_ sound as the first shell turned on. The boat rocked a little. Then the second and third shell switched on and a gust of wind blasted from the cave, immediately carrying the boat out of the hidden niche. Euphemia was holding on to the railing for dear life. She had almost fallen off the boat when it came alive. She had never been on a vehicle this fast!

 _This is amazing! Gerard has really outdone himself!_

Unbeknownst to her, a smile broke across her face from sheer wonder. She hadn't felt this alive in a long time. She spread her fingers and delighted in the feeling of air passing through them. That was when she noticed the first convoy. To her surprise, there really was just one. She adjusted the course to avoid it. She would rather not harm her own people if she had the choice. Alas, they didn't share the sentiment. The now enemy vessel turned their course towards her. She bit her lip, If she continued at this speed, they would just about collide with each other. But not if she was _faster_. Euphemia's eyes glinted. She was not going to let this opportunity pass. Luck had favoured her today and she would squeeze every last miniscule drop out of it. She closed her eyes and concentrated. With every breath she took, she felt more and more in control. She let her power flow, letting it guide her. Somewhere further away she heard shouting, yelling, but she paid it no mind. It held little importance. The only thing that mattered right now was on her fingertips. And then it stopped. Everything went still for a moment. She opened her eyes, but everything was blurry. Her ears were ringing. It's as if she had suddenly gone up to touch the clouds and then submerged. Her ears hurt. She covered them with her hands and hissed, but heard no sound. The blurriness slowly started to recede. She was gripping the railing hard; her knuckles were white. She slowly relaxed her hold and tried to make out what had happened. She blinked several times, easing the fuzziness away. Her ears were slowly turning back to normal as well. It was such an odd feeling. And then suddenly she felt a soft caress on her cheek. It was brief and fleeting and passed quick, but she had felt it. Her eyes widened in realization. She wasn't moving, she wasn't running, or falling, yet.. She felt wind. _Wind_. For the first time in her life she felt a breeze, as brief as it may have been. She hurriedly gripped the railing again and looked over the boat. With mouth open in awe, she looked at sea as it was alive.

 _I've left the Calm Sea!_

The dormant child in her was starting to wake up, taking in the many new unknowns and she knew, there was more to come. Euphemia's eyes were sparkling with excitement and joy until she wondered why exactly she _wasn't_ moving. The sea was carrying her, sure, but her boat had stopped doing so by itself somewhere. Concerned, she rushed towards the shells. There didn't seem to be anything out of place as far as she could tell, but she was no engineer. She furrowed her brow in confusion, but since she couldn't make anything of it, she decided to check the cabin. Unsurprisingly it was small. Straight ahead there was a huge mahogany table. A single wooden chair was tucked neatly under it, next to the small cabinet which adorned a metal knob. Above the counter there was a window overlooking the main deck. The walls on the sides were lined with bookcases filled to the brim with all kinds of brochures, novels and other paperbacks. A few framed photographs also decorated the shelves, but they were laden with a heavy layer of dust so she couldn't make out who or what were on them. In the right corner there was a small hatch heading down – most likely to the sleeping quarters. She decided she would start from there.

She walked over to the hatch and opened it. It creaked somewhat from years of disuse that had rusted the hinges. She took the small ladder down to the bottom deck and looked around. There were two hammocks, a double-doored closet and a big wooden chest. Wasting no time, she begun rummaging and taking note of everything of use.

After nearly half an hour in, she deduced that further digging would be fruitless. There were no prints or drafts, or well, nothing at all of the ship's layout. The next major obstacle she ran into was the missing navigational equipment. Not that she had any skill in the department whatsoever, mind you, but it was disheartening nonetheless. She had no clue where and when she would find any land and that brought her to the third hurdle. There were no provisions. She had no food, no water. The only things she found were a dagger, some light armour, photos and other useless trinkets.

"Completely prepared for the journey, yeah." She muttered to herself. She recalled a phrase she had once read in a book Gerard had given her. _The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown_.

"Hah. Ironic." She scoffed. Convenient timing remembering that, she mused, since she had just done that. And fear she indeed felt, not only fear of the unknown, but fear for the chances of her survival. She let out a heavy sigh, no longer excited.

Suddenly a wave of exhaustion hit her. She yawned openmouthedly and felt her eyes droop. She figured with all the days' events, it's wasn't surprising. Letting her weariness guide her, she dragged her feet down again to the sleeping quarters. She pulled out a thick, woollen blanket and a rice pillow from the chest and with those two in tow she made her way onto one of the hammocks. With a promise to herself, that she'd figure something out the next day, she fell into a fitful slumber, unknowing of the dangers her newfound sea provided.

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 ** _To be continued._**


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